Tora Tora Tora! (1970)

A BIG joint production of 20th Century Fox and Toei Co. this 144 minute blockbuster tells the story of Pearl Harbor - from both the American and the Japanese points of view. This risky approach endeared Tora Tora Tora to history buffs as the most accurate account of Pearl Harbor but proved a money loser at the box office.

Tora Tora Tora is a docudrama, purporting to depict events as they actually occurred from the events leading up to the attack, through it, and its aftermath. The American sequences were staged by Richard Fleischer (Soylent Green) while the Japanese scenes were filmed by Kinji Fusaku and Toshio Musada after film legend Akira Kurosawa (who produced no usable footage) was sacked by producer Darryl F. Zanuck.

Tora Tora Tora has gained luster - especially since the horrid Jerry Bruckheimer treatment of the story which we won't go into here - but that does not mean Tora is without problems.

To many viewers the first half d-r-a-g-s, meticulously showing the step-by-step buildup of events leading to the attack. Familiar actors like Martin Balsam and Jason Robards, Jr. play the key parts. The pacing suffers due to the relentless back and forth switching between parallel scenes. The Japanese scenes (presented in Japanese with subtitles) come off better but that may be because the subtitles give a more elegant translation than the forced verbal exchanges in the American scenes. In its defense, Tora does a good job of laying out the concerns of the Japanese to have an industrial base and the USA's Pacific presence standing in their way.

When the attack occurs, it is fast paced and thrilling. Special effects are very well done in the pre-CGI era. American AT6 Texans stand in for Japanese Zeroes, which were destroyed after the war. Of course most of the action had to be re-enacted which seems to give it more authenticity than the overdone pictures created within a computer.

One of the better points illustrated concerns the inertia of the bureaucracy where information is unable to be passed up the chain of command. US intelligence is convinced the Japanese are planning an attack but their superiors disregard them. Also, the aftermath looks more like an attempt to fix blame rather than fix the problems that allowed the attack to be so devastating.

By concentrating on the attack plot, Tora Tora Tora plays more to the history buffs but leaves a little bit to be desired for viewers craving some memorable characters. In a sense, it is an elegant failure pleasing nobody completely but tantalizingly evoking that rare desire for a movie made for art's sake alone.

The Fox DVD is a 2-disk special edition with the 144 minute movie presented in 2.35:1 theatrical format in color. There is a full length commentary with Richard Fleischer, a documentary, featurettes, and many other extra features.

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Better than Watching TV